The Thinest Veil
by Paperongraphite
Summary: [TPP] A collection of drabbles and oneshots, hopefully.
1. Breathe

**Title:** Breathe  
**Pairings:** Slight A/S, if you squint really really hard.  
**Rated:** K  
**Notes:** Easing my way into TPP drabble-dom. Just a small look at their Academy days.

Meditation was supposed to help her hone her skills at seeking holes in the fine intricacies of the storylines. Openings were Doors, potential weaknesses and threats. Every student in the Labyrinth needed the ability to locate the Doors as quickly as possible. It was part of basic training.

Normally, the prodigy enjoyed the feeling of being infinite, the knowledge that a day here was an hour in the real world. It startled her how much she could learn in a lifetime. But she was twelve years old and fidgeting. She had built up a reputation for always having the answer – though she might not necessarily be the first one to have it – but she was at a complete loss as to why Instructor Lysander had dragged them out to the Snow Region. She was freezing. She opened one eye slowly, in what she hoped was a stealthy move. Everyone else was deep in thought, including her greatest rival.

His face was serious but peaceful.

He was beating her at this exercise, apparently. His hands were moving involuntarily in a series of seals, to some unknown pattern.

So she took a deep breath, and focused on the spider web, letting herself go as she sought the gaps.

And each time she breathed, a new link was forged.


	2. Troublesome

**Title:** Troublesome  
**Pairings:** One sided F/E.  
**Rated:** K  
**Notes:** For some reason, I just find Mercedes terribly boring and prefer Felicia a lot more.

She was opportunistic, perhaps even manipulative. She knew what she wanted (to become a highly successful A-level Locksmith) and how to attain it (by excelling on her missions). She knew the obstacles in her path (a heightened sense of danger now that the Clockwork System was finally gaining power) and the people she needed to help her overcome any challenge (her venerable team).

She was calm under pressure, a proven leader with an even more impressive record. She had yet to fail any mission. Her team never came back with any casualties. She knew each member's strengths and weaknesses. She was, in essence, the perfect field agent.

She was young. She had heard the story so many times. "You've got potential. Perhaps the best Locksmith we've had in decades." And then the lingering, hesitant unspoken thought.

"You might have tainted blood."

She wasn't from one of the old families, sworn to protect their respective dignitaries. She had no loyalties to any clan, no curse placed upon her head by a vengeful fairy godmother. Her parents weren't from the Other Side. She was clean, moldable.

Maybe that's what scared them so much.

So she sat in the dining hall by herself, gazing off into the distance. She didn't have much of an appetite anymore.

He was there, of course. She had sparred with him once at the proficiency exams. She had heard a lot about him. He, like her, was the top student of his section. But he was Old Blood, and she was "questionable."

She barely heard what Roxy was telling her. Something about Mercedes' borderline crush on Ethan.

The soft clink of silverware against a plastic tray. She excused herself, told Roxy she'd meet her later in the library.

She didn't expect him to be there too, asking her if he could sit at her table. Something about a lack of available seats.

So she smiled, hid the fear and blush behind a confident smile and finely applied makeup.

They sat there in silence, and she thought she could get used to this.


	3. The Same Sort of Story

**Title:** The Same Sort of Story  
**Pairings:** E/F, A/S  
**Rated:** K

Love like this is found and gone  
Hold your breath and let it slip away  
I had you in my life  
- Exit the Ordinary, "March 31"

It was taking all of her willpower not to wrap her arms around his neck tightly, not to scream at him for scaring her like that. So instead she just stares at him, lip quivering, waiting until he finishes brushing the dust from his overcoat and expels his lungs of soot and ash in one graceful breath.

And then she nearly crushes him with the weight of her body, voice hysterical and so he silences her with a soft kiss.

He tastes like smoke and flame and she can feel her cheeks burning, flush with emotion. She knows that Mercedes is watching but she doesn't really care.

He's alive and that's all that matters.

----------------

They're trapped in a prison reinforced with strong webbing -- she estimates that it will take at least an hour to break through with brute force. But they only have about 20 minutes and their Protector is currently unconscious. As second in command, she must make the decision.

She tells Thomas to start diverting his energy so that they can work together to make a key -- one of them will have to screw up the whole damned lock system -- and she tells Jocelyn to start healing Aidan's broken form.

She has to buy Meg time, and out of the corner of her eye she sees Colin running. Just a little while longer, she thinks.

There is a beautiful sound of rupture, and as she turns around she can see the shoe being flung into the storyline.

But mostly she's holding Aidan's hand, her heart pausing until his eyes flutter open.

He'll never know how absolutely frightened she was, because she'll never admit it.

It's just the way things are between them.


	4. Heart on Her Sleeve

**Title:** Heart on Her Sleeve  
**Pairings:** A/S, L/S

**Rated:** K

"They're not always going to be there." Louise's voice is harsh, jarring in the dead silence. They are driving somewhere in the middle of the night because she needs to breathe and luckily the diner is still open.

The radio is off and she hears the sounds of crickets competing with raccoons as they knock over trash cans.

She doesn't need to ask her best friend for names because they're already on the tip of her tongue. She rolls them over, getting a taste for which she prefers.

Again, she is torn.

"He's a nice guy--" Louise began, pulling into a parking spot.

"But?" She replied, grabbing her purse and closing the door.

"The other one is hopelessly in love with you. One of these days he's going to realize he's an extremely attractive young male with intellect and wit, and that he doesn't have to wait for you to acknowledge him. You can't be on his mantle forever." Louise orders a coffee, staring at her best friend of over 10 years.

Sophia sips her tea, mulling over the blunt words. In the end, she knows she'll have to choose. But what can she do? She loves them both...

She just wishes she wasn't so aloof.


	5. Envy

This shouldn't be happening. No, she shouldn't be here, not now, not ever. But she is.

She's happy, isn't that all that matters?

It's not her fault if Sophia doesn't know a good thing when it smacks her in the face.

So Louise smiles as Aidan asks her out to dinner and she says yes, because if she doesn't, then Sophia might just wake up.

---------------

Christmas lights in the windows, she wonders if she belongs. She's an orphan living in the Labyrinth's residence halls. It doesn't make sense for her to be here, right in the middle of all those festivities, because she isn't family and she's in limbo right now about whether or not she's a friend.

She realized that she had a strong disliking for Mercedes--she wasn't sure why. Maybe it was her constant fawning over Ethan. That only caused distraction.

Regardless, she was here.

She just felt a little sad when she had to leave the party, all the people laughing and enjoying company.

But she's not going to give Mercedes that satisfaction.


End file.
